Debates of August 21, 2007 (day 14)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Transportation. Can the Minister tell me in the House to the people in the Sahtu when will the Great Bear River Bridge be built?

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister responsible for Transportation, Mr. Menicoche.

Return To Question 171-15(6): Great Bear River Bridge Project

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Bear River Bridge project had to be delayed as of last year. We are assessing right now the new federal infrastructure money, how to invest it in our plans in the near future, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary To Question 171-15(6): Great Bear River Bridge Project

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell me that the plans that are going forward to the federal government for whatever plans they are making, why doesn’t it include the Sahtu people in terms of looking at some real solutions in terms of building this bridge? Can the Minister commit to this House here, this day here, that the Bear River Bridge is a high priority as he said it is -- it is on the shelves -- to take it off the shelves to be constructed just like the Deh Cho Bridge project?

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Menicoche.

Further Return To Question 171-15(6): Great Bear River Bridge Project

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. As such, it’s a priority in the CSIF strategy document for our government to build that bridge and it still is a priority for us to construct the Bear River Bridge. However, financing right now due to increasing inflationary pressures have put it out of reach of our current budget and that’s what we’re looking at right now, Mr. Speaker. Thanks.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary To Question 171-15(6): Great Bear River Bridge Project

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I get some different stories here, but, Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the Minister, because of the financial constraints, why did this government not come to the Sahtu and say we have an issue here, we’re short $15 million, let’s look at a solution to build this bridge? Why hasn’t this government come to the Sahtu to say can you help us? We’re willing to help. Why haven’t they come? When will they come to the Sahtu and demand that this bridge here…We’ll demand this bridge here gets built. Where is the money?

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Menicoche.

Further Return To Question 171-15(6): Great Bear River Bridge Project

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I’d just like to say to the Member that it was my pleasure to accompany him to travel to the Sahtu region in July. It was great to be there and see the country and meet with the communities there, especially in Tulita. They were very concerned about the Bear River Bridge project and I indicated to them at that time it was once again due to inflationary pressures. So I had to red flag the project, we had to put it aside and we have to assess our current budget and the current federal announcements of new funding of how we’re going to best move this project forward. And he’s right; we are short $15 million. We had originally been approved and budgeted at $25 million to build the bridge, we went and bought the steel, were just about to build a bridge and then, for whatever reason, in this part of our world there, Mr. Speaker, and this segment, the bridge costs almost doubled. They went from $25 million to $40 million. In a government of our size, we just cannot find that kind of money to do a bridge. We had to put it aside and we’re looking at current ways of financing and constructing that bridge, but it is a priority, Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Time for question period has expired. I’ll allow the Member a short supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary To Question 171-15(6): Great Bear River Bridge Project

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think we’re going to change the name of the Bear River Bridge to the Red Flag Bridge. You got red flagging going on on that side of the government here, Mr. Speaker. On this specific issue on the Bear River Bridge, the Deh Cho Bridge is going ahead. Why not the Sahtu? Certainly someone has taken our money from the Bear River Bridge and put it somewhere else.

Ooh.

We want to know when that bridge is going over the Bear River. So can the Minister, again, look at plans to start phasing in parts of the work of the Bear River Bridge? I appreciate the Minister and Mr. Roland coming into my region and looking and we had to go across by boat because we had no bridge across. So I wanted to ask the Minister, can he look at his department to phase in parts of this and that we see a bridge in a couple of years? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Menicoche.

Further Return To Question 171-15(6): Great Bear River Bridge Project

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I want to assure to the Member that the money that was designated for the Bear River Bridge did not get reallocated somewhere else. Well, the money in the bridge program stayed in the bridge program for our roads north up the Mackenzie Valley, Mr. Speaker. Of the $25 million from the Bear River Bridge, that had to be reallocated to three other bridges on our Mackenzie Valley winter road system, Mr. Speaker, and that’s where the allocations got reallocated to. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Once again, the Bear River Bridge is a priority in this government and we’ll work towards it and be constructive about finding funding opportunities and funding arrangements to get that bridge built. Thank you.